When Li Kefan and Duan Cuilu arrived at Wang Peng's place, their first words were about unemployment, leaving Wang Peng and Li Mingzhu completely bewildered.

"Dad, Mom, what happened? Did the light bulb factory go bankrupt?"

Li Mingzhu immediately tensed up, holding a rolling pin for rolling out dumplings in her hand, her face covered in flour, looking quite comical.

"Don't be nervous, losing your job isn't a big deal," Wang Peng said with a smile as he wiped flour off her face.

The family sat on the sofa, and Wang Peng brewed a pot of tea.

The elderly couple didn't seem too nervous. Li Kefan took a sip of tea and asked, "Xiao Peng, how's business at the tobacco and liquor store?"

"Not bad," Wang Peng said with a smile. "I've recently taken on a few big orders and earned five or six thousand yuan."

Upon hearing this, the elderly couple were both shocked.

This small tobacco and liquor store made a profit of five or six thousand yuan in less than three months, completely shattering their stereotypes.

"Dad, our business is doing very well. My comic book has also been signed, and I can make money now."

Li Mingzhu was extremely anxious and asked, "What exactly happened to the light bulb factory? Why are you all unemployed?"

"The factory laid off workers. They're offering a 1,000 yuan settlement fee for leaving, so your mother and I are leaving."

Li Kefan said, "The light bulb factory has been shut down for more than half a year, and everyone is just getting by and collecting their wages."

Wang Peng thought about it carefully and realized that it seemed like there was a wave of layoffs happening right now.

State-owned enterprises are not profitable, most of them are losing money, and they have become too big to be controlled. It is normal for them to be shut down and laid off.

“Your father and I are very worried that if we continue to wait, things will not end well, so we will sign the papers, take the money, and leave,” Duan Cuilu said.

"Mom, you're right to worry, and you and Dad did the right thing."

Wang Peng gave him a thumbs up, saying, "The light bulb factory was doomed to fail. He can get resettlement compensation now, but that may not be the case in the future."

The elderly couple were surprised that Wang Peng would approve of their approach, and they felt much better instantly.

"Dad, Mom, it's okay to lose your job. I'll take care of you in your old age."

Li Mingzhu was relieved; the reason for her resignation was the closure of the light bulb factory, so it didn't matter.

"Haha..." The elderly couple laughed, feeling gratified by their daughter's filial piety.

Li Kefan waved his hand, "We're only in our forties, it's a bit early to retire now, we definitely need to find something to do."

“Your dad and I thought of many options, such as selling breakfast or opening a stationery store, but we felt that none of them were suitable.”

Duan Cuilu said, "Xiaopeng, you're good at business, could you give us some advice?"

All three of them looked at Wang Peng at the same time.

Feeling a bit stressed, Wang Peng scratched his head. "Let me think about it carefully."

The wave of layoffs is a crisis, but it also leaves many opportunities, but he had a hard life in his past and didn't pay attention to these.

After thinking it over and over, I still couldn't come up with any good ideas.

"Dad, Mom, how about this, you invest in my tobacco and liquor store?"

Wang Peng said, "I want to expand the business. You can invest and take shares, and then receive dividends at the end of the year."

After thinking it over carefully, Li Kefan said, "It's not impossible. How do you plan to expand the business?"

"It's about setting up door-to-door delivery and supplying alcohol to restaurants in the provincial capital."

Wang Peng said, "You don't have to invest. I'll buy a three-wheeled motorcycle, and you can help me deliver goods."

He gave the couple two options: either invest and wait for dividends, or work and earn a salary.

The couple couldn't make up their minds right away, so Li Kefan said, "Don't rush, let's think about it carefully."

"Xiaopeng, talk to your dad. Mingzhu, let's go make dumplings," Duan Cuilu said with a smile.

Half an hour later, everyone was able to eat hot dumplings.

After dinner, Li Kefan and Duan Cuilu went home, and Wang Peng began to consider the feasibility of home delivery.

Nowadays, most businesses don't offer door-to-door delivery, unless it's a large client like Xinglan Restaurant.

Most restaurant owners buy vegetables at the market and wholesale alcohol at the liquor market; these are all small-scale businesses.

But Wang Peng doesn't underestimate small businesses, because most restaurants are small businesses.

"Honey, do you really want to start a home delivery service?"

Li Mingzhu put her arm around his neck and laughed, "If it's not suitable, then don't do it. You can't force the business to expand just to help my parents."

That sounds nice; it seems that in the girlfriend's heart, her boyfriend is more important than her parents.

“Expanding operations is a must; I’ve wanted to do this for a long time,” Wang Peng said.

"That's good. Tell me your plan, and I'll give you some advice." Li Mingzhu was happy.

Wang Peng shook his head. "The plan is simple: go to various restaurants and convenience stores to run business and deliver goods to them."

After thinking it over carefully, Li Mingzhu got off her boyfriend and said, "Let's go to the tobacco and liquor store and talk to Du Lei."

"Let's go, let's go now." Wang Peng immediately went back to his bedroom to change his clothes.

Du Lei is the sole shareholder of the tobacco and liquor store. Li Kefan has to consult with Du Lei before investing in the store or providing delivery services.

The car arrived at the tobacco and liquor store, and Wang Peng and Li Mingzhu got out.

As soon as the two entered the store, two girls came down from upstairs. They were dressed very lightly, showing off their long legs, and wearing lipstick.

"Hello, boss." A girl in leather boots waved to Wang Peng.

"Hello, are you eating instant noodles upstairs?" Wang Peng asked with a smile.

"Okay, thank you for the hot water, boss and Brother Lei." The girl in leather boots waved to Du Lei again and left the tobacco and liquor store with her companion.

Du Lei smiled and said, "Her name is Huang Xiaolan. She's from our hometown and lives in Gangtou Township."

Gangtou Township is right next to Ping'an Town, Wang Peng nodded.

"Brother Lei, what do they do? Why are they wearing those kinds of clothes?"

A hint of disgust flashed in Li Mingzhu's eyes; she had already guessed their profession.

"I don't know either." Du Lei quickly changed the subject. "Brother Peng, sister-in-law, is school closed today?"

"No holiday, there's something I want to discuss with you," Wang Peng said. "Brother Lei, shall we go upstairs and talk?"

Du Lei nodded, stepped out from behind the counter, and followed Wang Peng upstairs, while Li Mingzhu stayed downstairs to mind the shop.

Upstairs in the living room, there was a thermos on the dining table and two bowls from instant noodles that had just been used up.

"Huang Xiaolan is a bit sloppy, I'll talk to her about it later." Du Lei hurriedly cleared the table and went to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

Wang Peng was both amused and exasperated. Not only did he provide hot water for free, but he also had to wash their dishes for free.

A few minutes later, Du Lei returned to the living room, sat on the sofa, and skillfully lit a cigarette.

"Brother Lei, when did this start?" Wang Peng asked, pointing at his cigarettes.

"About two weeks ago," Du Lei said with a smile. "It was pretty boring staying in the shop all the time, so I had a smoke to perk myself up."

"Brother Lei, to be honest, were you influenced by Huang Xiaolan?" Wang Peng asked.

"No, no, that's not true," Du Lei hurriedly denied.

Wang Peng felt a chill in his heart, because Du Lei couldn't lie; he would blush whenever he did.

"Brother Lei, tell me the truth, how far have you two gone? Have you slept with her?" Wang Peng stared directly at Du Lei.

Du Lei's face flushed red instantly. He lowered his head, remained silent, and kept smoking.

Did you use a condom when you went to bed?

Wang Peng walked up to him, put his hands in his pockets, and said, "I told you, people in their line of work are most prone to getting sick."